The BMW Z4 sDrive35is will be replaced by a Z4 M Performance model in its next generation

BMW’s M Performance line of vehicles will be replacing the brand’s “is” models, we’ve learned from a BMW source. Slotted between the brand’s regular lineup and the true M GmbH–developed high-power cars, the M Performance models are developed in close collaboration with M. On BMW’s home turf in Europe, the first M Performance models are the X5 M50d, the X6 M50d, and the M550d xDrive with a tri-turbocharged straight-six diesel engine, as well as the gasoline-powered M135i hatchback.

The powerful turbodiesels have been added to the lineup, while the M135i comes as the slightly more powerful 1-series M is killed off. In the future, there will be further high-powered M Performance derivatives of various BMW models, including the 3-series coupe or 4-series, and the Z4. M Performance versions will replace the currently offered “is” models. “We won’t make the change right now as it would confuse customers, but with the next model generation change, the successors of these models will be M Performance vehicles,” a BMW source confirmed. The Z4 M35i could come to market in early 2015; the M335i (or M435i) will be launched next year.

The M Performance models don’t follow the purist approach of the true M cars; the M135i, for example, comes with an optional torque-converter automatic instead of a dual-clutch transmission. The turbodiesels also come with conventional automatic gearboxes, and their chassis, as well as the driver interface, is developed from BMW’s regular turbodiesels instead of employing a trickle-down approach from the M5, the X5 M, or the X6 M. The engines used by the M Performance models typically also are used in other BMW models without the M Performance moniker.